The present invention relates to installation relative to a foundation, or to what is know in the art as a podium slab, of an upright column which is to form part of a multi-story building structure. In particular, it relates to a novel bucket-well (also called a bucket-well structure), and an associated preliminary upright stabilizer system, that are designed to aid in such an installation.
When a column which is to be employed in a building frame structure is installed, it is, of course, necessary that the column be placed in a true vertical condition, with its central axis properly located relative to the horizontal. The column must also be suitably stabilized in the correct vertical position until it has become appropriately anchored in place. With regard to a column which rises directly from a building foundation, or from what is known as a podium slab (which typically resides just overhead the first level in a multi-story building), it is extremely important that true verticality and precise lateral locating take place, since any error committed at this stage of building frame structure can telegraph into significant positional errors in higher stories or levels in a building. It is also important that, relative to its long axis, a column be in the correct rotational disposition. Finally, once such column orienting has happened, it is important to capture and lock the disposition of a column's base so as to secure the efforts made to position it correctly.
The present invention specifically addresses these matters by providing what is referred to herein as a bucket-well that is suitably embedded in a building foundation or in a podium slab, with this bucket-well including a well having an upwardly facing receiving opening for receiving the base of a column inside the well. Such an opening has sufficient lateral clearance, relative to the footprint of a column, to allow that column to be adjusted laterally and vertically angularly so as to position it in a precision manner relative to the horizontal and to a plumb line. This bucket-well also freely permits column rotation about its own long axis. Providing these opportunities for adjustment is a significant feature and advantage offered by the present invention. For example, in a typical installation, there is usually only a very tiny amount, say about one-eighth-inches, of forgiveness provided for adjusting the correctness of the lateral position of the base of a column. A preferred embodiment of the present invention, as will be seen, preferably offers significantly more adjustability clearance, for example, allowing adjustment of the base of a column in substantially any lateral direction, back and forth, up to one to two inches. Additionally, this enhanced lateral clearance readily accommodates adjustments in verticality, and axial rotation.
During the preliminary stages of column installation with respect to a foundation or a podium slab, it is, as was earlier mentioned, very important that the column be stabilized in an upright position until it has become securely anchored in place. The present invention offers a unique openable and closeable, tripodically supported collar structure having legs which can rest on a foundation or on a podium slab, and an openable and closeable collar which can be suitably closed on and around the outside of an upright column, relatively near to the base. This structure provides initial stabilizing support against undesired tilting of an about-to-be installed column. When the column has been anchored in place, this collar support structure can be removed for use with the installation of another column.
With the base of a column received within the bucket-well structure of this invention, and according to practice of this invention, a suitable conventional grouting substance, initially in a fluid-flowable form, is poured into the bucket-well to fill the same around the outside of the received base end of a column. This grouting substance, referred to herein as an anchoring material, cures and hardens to capture, contain, and “position-lock” the base of a column. Preferably, the invention is employed with a hollow, tubular type column, and the wall in this column, near the base, is furnished with at least one throughbore, or access opening, that opens to the inside and to the outside of the column in order to enable poured grout within the bucket-well mentioned to flow into the inside of the column, thus to create a through-wall, bridging anchoring portion of the anchoring material, which greatly enhances the anchoring and securing of the base of a column in the bucket-well.
Preferably also, an optional foot plate is anchored across the bottom end of a column, with this plate having a perimeter which is larger than the footprint of the column, thus to create a shoulder/shelf-like-extension which circumsurrounds the outside of the column. With curing of the mentioned grouting substance, and as will be seen shortly, this extension functions to prevent vertical lift of a column relative to its anchored position in the preferred embodiment of the bucket-well of this invention.
These and other features and advantages which are attained by the present invention will become more fully apparent as the description which now follows is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
In none of these three drawing figures is there anything which is necessarily drawn to scale. Rather, structural elements are pictured at appropriate scales in order to enable a clear understanding of the features of the invention.